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jamie_o 's review for:
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope
by William Kamkwamba
William Kamkwamba's story is fascinating. At the beginning, the African accent of the narrator was challenging and it was not so interesting, with strange stories of superstition and magic. But the story picked up and I grew accustomed to Chike Johnson's accent and appreciate the authenticity he gives the book. He really is a great narrator.
William provides some history of Malawi along with his family history and his own life story. His work on the windmill doesn't come about until roughly halfway through the book. The scientific/technical jargon regarding his windmill and inventions was tedious for me. I think I would understand better by actually seeing. William's family is Christian but in general the Malawian people are superstitious and believe in magic, so much so that they started blaming William and his windmill for the drought.
William is such a great role model: humble, hardworking, inquisitive, optimistic and showing great perseverance during hardship. The severe drought and famine that struck Malawi in 2001 left his parents unable to afford his education. Unwilling to give up on his dream, he pursued self-education by using the small quantity of donated books in his local library. The drought/famine section is long and agonizing to read, but it's part of his story and greatly impacted him.
One story in particular that I enjoyed about the history of Malawi involves the Yao (a Muslim people group) from Mozambique. The Yao would cross large Lake Malawi and raid villages, capture the Chewa (the largest ethnic group in Malawi) and enslave them. They would sell any who survived the voyage, to the Portuguese. Missionary David Livingstone helped end the slavery and reconcile the two groups. He also helped build good schools, missions, and hospitals, leading to prosperity. Today the Yao and Chewa are on friendly terms. I need to check out a biography of David Livingstone.
The epilogue tells the inspiring story of William's continued success and experiences internationally.
"Seeing this, it gave me even more confidence that we Africans can develop our continent if we just put our minds and abundant resources together and stop waiting for others to do it for us."
*due to some mature content this book would be best for maybe upper middle school and up
William provides some history of Malawi along with his family history and his own life story. His work on the windmill doesn't come about until roughly halfway through the book. The scientific/technical jargon regarding his windmill and inventions was tedious for me. I think I would understand better by actually seeing. William's family is Christian but in general the Malawian people are superstitious and believe in magic, so much so that they started blaming William and his windmill for the drought.
William is such a great role model: humble, hardworking, inquisitive, optimistic and showing great perseverance during hardship. The severe drought and famine that struck Malawi in 2001 left his parents unable to afford his education. Unwilling to give up on his dream, he pursued self-education by using the small quantity of donated books in his local library. The drought/famine section is long and agonizing to read, but it's part of his story and greatly impacted him.
One story in particular that I enjoyed about the history of Malawi involves the Yao (a Muslim people group) from Mozambique. The Yao would cross large Lake Malawi and raid villages, capture the Chewa (the largest ethnic group in Malawi) and enslave them. They would sell any who survived the voyage, to the Portuguese. Missionary David Livingstone helped end the slavery and reconcile the two groups. He also helped build good schools, missions, and hospitals, leading to prosperity. Today the Yao and Chewa are on friendly terms. I need to check out a biography of David Livingstone.
The epilogue tells the inspiring story of William's continued success and experiences internationally.
"Seeing this, it gave me even more confidence that we Africans can develop our continent if we just put our minds and abundant resources together and stop waiting for others to do it for us."
*due to some mature content this book would be best for maybe upper middle school and up